Oops! Mistakes happen
Dealing with daily life
In an interview, the late genius guitarist Eddie Van Halen once said his father gave him a valuable piece of advice in Dutch. After he spoke in his native language, he translated for him. “Whenever you make a mistake playing, do it again and smile that way, people will think you meant it. Keep peddling through.”
If you ever saw Van Halen in concert, you know Eddie smiled a lot. His impish grin and his electric playing set him apart from others.
“Mistakes are part of the game. It’s how well you recover from them that makes a great player.” is a quote from the notable stage rockstar Alice Cooper. His life, onstage and off, was riddled with holes. It was how he eventually overcame them that made him who know today.
Why am I quoting rockstars?
Eddie Van Halen answers this best. “You can learn from everybody.”
Mistakes are a part of life. We all make them. Sometimes we repeat them. Some of us deny making them. Few of us own them. Yet, we all carry them around with us.
Our character is formed, and our lives are set by what we do with our mistakes. Those who deny making any lose the trust of others. People who repeat them over and over and over never learn from them. The ones who own their mistakes do so because they have learned from them.
Who cares if I make a mistake?
What business is it of anyone else?
Sometimes our mistakes affect others. A partner who cheats can devastate one or more people in their life. A member of a band can throw off a song. A person who steals can be exiled from their family. One of the laws of physics states that for every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction. Everything we do has a consequence, including mistakes.
What should I do when I make a mistake?
What can I do when someone’s mistake impacts me?
You have a choice. You can hold onto the snafu. Clutch it tight and dwell on it often. Let it shape your thoughts, your self-worth. Use it to shield yourself from others. Let it determine who call friend. You can stay where you are in your pain and wallow it daily. Hold pity parties often with others who, like you, have decided this is the defining moment of their life. There is no to move ahead.
Or
You own it and keep peddling through the mud it brings. You listen to others who made that mistake and heed what they learned from it. Overcome the obstacles that the mistake creates in your life and ask forgiveness if you’ve hurt others. You can pack your mistake in a keepsake box to remind yourself never do this again, lesson learned. Life continues, maybe on a slightly different path or perhaps on a better-paved road.
Musicians may decide to repeat a mistake to give the audience an unexpected thrill. A tailor or seamstress may choose to repeat a mistake because it enhances the outfit. A writer may find a mistake in their work that plays out better than the original storyline. Mistakes can be a blessing or a curse. It’s all lies in how you handle them.
Life is a journey. The road we’re on is filled with potholes called mistakes. But it is also filled with avenues of opportunities. How you handle your mistakes and the choices before you are what defines your character and your ability to thrive.
Alice Cooper is right. It’s the ones who recover well from mistakes that become the great players in this game of life we live.
The choice is yours.
Do you refuse to admit to snafus?
Do you prefer to hold onto setbacks or let obstacles stand in your way?
Or
Do you want to thrive and be known as a great player?
